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Around the world, support is growing for electric cars. Automakers are delivering more electric models with longer range and lower prices, such as the Chevrolet Bolt and the Tesla Model 3. China has set aggressive targets for electric vehicle sales to curb pollution; some European countries aim to be all-electric by 2040 or sooner.
Those lofty ambitions face numerous challenges, including one practical consideration for consumers: If they buy electric cars, where will they charge them?
[...] Mr. Romano says there's no exact ratio of the number of chargers needed per car. But he says workplaces should have around 2.5 chargers for every employee and retail stores need one for every 20 electric cars. Highways need one every 50 to 75 miles, he says. That suggests a lot of gaps still need to be filled.
Automakers and governments are pushing to fill them. The number of publicly available, global charging spots grew 72 percent to more than 322,000 last year, the International Energy Agency said. Navigant Research expects that to grow to more than 2.2 million by 2026; more than one-third of those will be in China.
Tesla Inc. – which figured out years ago that people wouldn't buy its cars without roadside charging – is doubling its global network of Supercharger stations to 10,000 this year. BMW, Daimler, Volkswagen, and Ford are building 400 fast-charging stations in Europe. Volkswagen is building hundreds of stations across the United States as part of its settlement for selling polluting diesel engines. Even oil-rich Dubai, which just got its first Tesla showroom, has more than 50 locations to charge electric cars.
If range anxiety and the availability of charging stations remain a barrier to EV adoption, then for Tesla it seems like it's nearly a solved problem. Will a reliable supply of batteries or the self-driving features piggy-backing on EV platforms like the Teslas or the Nissan Leaf prove the real differentiators in the market?
(Score: 2) by NewNic on Thursday September 07 2017, @06:18PM (3 children)
If your EV has a 200+ mile range, then you probably want (or should) sit down and have some food (or at least a coffee). That makes gas stations a poor choice for placing chargers.
With a 200+ mile range, for most people (not everyone), the vast majority of their drives are going to be within range of home, so the most convenient charging option is at home, overnight. Unless you have owned an EV, I don't think you can understand how convenient this is.
Gas stations are horrible, smelly places, frequently with disgusting toilets. People go there out of necessity, not choice.
lib·er·tar·i·an·ism ˌlibərˈterēənizəm/ noun: Magical thinking that useful idiots mistake for serious political theory
(Score: 2) by requerdanos on Thursday September 07 2017, @06:39PM (2 children)
Or possibly it could make gas stations a great place to put restaurants, not just convenience stores. "Travel stop" type gas stations near major highways do this already [ta-petro.com].
I see how it would be terrific to leave the car at the end of the day depleted and find it first thing in the morning full of energy and ready to go... But even though the vast majority of my driving is within range of home, there are no charging points in the apartment complex where I live, and I can't install one (I asked).
Well, sure, they have a captive audience--practically no one would go there if not for the need to refuel a vehicle. But whether they are well-maintained or not is a function of the surrounding culture, and of the ownership/management's respect for and adherence to same. Most (not all) gas stations near me are clean and inviting except for the fuel smell, and the shift from hydrocarbons to electrons might mitigate that somewhat.
(Score: 2) by NewNic on Thursday September 07 2017, @10:15PM (1 child)
My city (and other around it, I think) is requiring new construction to include wiring for chargers. Apartment complexes are adding chargers because it adds value to the complex. But I don't make the claim that I live in a typical location: we probably have the highest density of electric vehicles in California nearby.
lib·er·tar·i·an·ism ˌlibərˈterēənizəm/ noun: Magical thinking that useful idiots mistake for serious political theory
(Score: 2) by requerdanos on Thursday September 07 2017, @10:40PM
I would really like that. I live about ten miles from the beach, and at the beach, I have seen chargers pop up among public beach parking within the last year, but ten miles is kind of a long walk to/from your parking spot.